Patients often take both psychiatric and general medical drugs, prescribed by different practitioners, as well as nonprescription drugs. If you lack complete and up-to-date medication data for your patients, how can you correctly evaluate their clinical status and adjust the medication regimen that you've prescribed? Read this CME article to learn about the need to improve medication reconciliation procedures.

When your patients with schizophrenia insufficiently respond to antipsychotic treatment, do you increase the dose? Do you check their plasma drug concentration? Read this CME article to find out whether increasing the dose provides any greater benefit than waiting longer for patients to respond to the lower dose.

Perinatal depression is common and can have serious implications for both the mother and child. However, the authors of this review found that over 90% of women with antenatal or postpartum depression receive inadequate treatment. Read this CME activity so that your patients won't go undiagnosed and untreated.

Marijuana has been approved in many US states to treat a number of psychiatric conditions, including posttraumatic stress disorder, agitation in Alzheimer’s disease, and Tourette’s disorder. But what is the strength of evidence for the efficacy of marijuana and other cannabinoids for these psychiatric indications? Learn more by reading this CME journal article.

Nonmedical use of prescription stimulants among college students is a growing public health problem. How can clinicians reduce stimulant misuse? Read this journal CME article to learn about the problem and what you can do about it.

Although opioid analgesics are important components of treatment for chronic pain, prescriptions for opioid analgesics---as well as harms from their use---have skyrocketed during the last decade. Do you systematically screen patients for nonmedical prescription opioid use and educate them about the risks? Read this journal CME article for more information.

Do you prescribe benzodiazepines to your patients with schizophrenia? Learn more about the risk-benefit profile of this strategy by reading this journal CME study. The findings on mortality risk may surprise you.

Do you see patients who are older military veterans? Did you know that some experience exacerbated posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, possibly decades after their trauma? Read this journal CME activity to find out about the prevalence and determinants of PTSD exacerbations in older age.

When your patients complete the Patient Health Questionnaire, they are asked about the frequency of suicidal thoughts. For patients who indicate suicidal ideation, how long does their suicide risk last? How does clinical intervention change the risk? To learn more, read this journal CME study.

Previous studies have demonstrated that depression may be a risk factor for dementia. Does the risk of dementia change when people take antidepressants? Learn more about research findings in this journal CME study, which compared the histories of antidepressant use in patients with and without dementia.

When you treat patients for major depressive disorder, do you screen them for obsessive-compulsive symptoms? Read this journal CME activity based on STAR*D data to learn more about how obsessions and compulsions affect depression remission and how you can identify them.

Your patients' safety may be at risk if they have unrecognized excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). Read this Commentary to learn how to assess EDS, to recognize any underlying conditions, and to select appropriate behavioral and pharmacologic strategies to treat both EDS and associated conditions.

When you prescribe antipsychotic agents, do you record a diagnosis of mental illness? Do you prescribe them long-term for patients with dementia? Read this journal CME activity to find out about prescription trends.

Despite the lack of randomized controlled trials of marijuana in the treatment of PTSD, some US states have legalized this treatment strategy. Review this journal CME article to find out more about potential outcomes of this treatment.

Do clinicians resemble the general public in terms of negatively viewing persons with mental illness? Read this journal CME activity to learn whether a diagnosis of schizophrenia in a case vignette influences providers’ clinical expectations and referral practices. Then, examine whether your own perspectives on the abilities and competence of high-functioning patients with schizophrenia are more negative than warranted.

Which types of childhood maltreatment are associated with greater risk of suicide attempt in adulthood? Are child abuse or neglect associated with an earlier age at first suicide attempt? Do psychopathology and sociodemographic characteristics affect the association between childhood maltreatment and suicide attempt? Explore answers to these questions in this CME journal article.

Do you know which signs and symptoms have been identified as precursors of bipolar disorder? Read this CME journal article to learn about precursors that may arise years before syndromal onset, often with significant morbidity and disability.

While not everyone with suicidal ideation progresses to a plan and an attempt, does everyone who attempts suicide first make a plan? Does the absence of a major depressive episode imply the absence of risk for a suicide attempt? How does substance use affect risk? To learn more, read this CME journal article describing results from a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration survey.

Do you integrate cardiovascular health into the assessment, monitoring, and treatment of people with bipolar disorder? Read this CME activity to learn about the risk for new-onset cardiovascular disease among patients with bipolar disorder compared with those with major depression and controls. The findings of this 3-year study, which controlled for age and risk factors such as smoking, obesity, and hypertension, may surprise you.

How often do you diagnose patients with major depressive disorder only to later realize they have bipolar disorder? Using a method called the Probabilistic Approach to Bipolar Depression may help you with this challenging differential diagnosis. Read this CME journal article about identifying differences in depressive presentations between bipolar disorder and MDD.

When you assess veterans' trauma histories, do you include both combat- and noncombat-related traumas? Both types are common in veterans. The prevalence of PTSD in US veterans is slightly higher than that of the general US adult population, and veterans with PTSD have higher rates of other psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviors than veterans without PTSD. Read this CME journal article to learn what types of interventions may benefit veterans with PTSD.

How do you help your patients receive coordinated medical and psychiatric care? A study of nearly 144,000 people with depression reports that 68% have at least 1 comorbid physical health condition. Read this journal CME article to see why health care systems must be structured to manage multiple conditions concurrently rather than to use a single-disease approach.

Nearly 1 in 5 of your patients with bipolar disorder may have metabolic syndrome (MetS), and 16% to 36% may have components of it. Do you regularly assess patients for these abnormalities? Read this journal CME activity to learn about MetS risk factors and the need for integrated psychiatric and primary care for these patients.

Could the course of illness of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affect suicidal ideation among veterans? Read this CME activity from The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry to find out how rates of suicidal ideation differed among veterans with varying trajectories of PTSD over more than 2 and a half years.

Can you predict your patients' depression treatment response using demographic, clinical, and socioeconomic variables? Read this CME activity from The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry to learn the results of a study of response to collaborative care for depression in federally qualified health centers.

How can you help to diminish the epidemic of prescription drug abuse, which is disproportionately affecting those with mental illness? In this CME article from The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, learn why prescription drug monitoring program databases are powerful tools to recognize high frequencies of patient exposure to prescribed opioids and other drugs that are frequently abused.

When your patients' major depressive disorder has not remitted after 2 antidepressant trials of adequate dose and duration, do you consider repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)? Read this CME activity from The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry for a review of available studies on the use of rTMS in patients with treatment-resistant depression.

Nearly half of initial diagnoses of drug-induced psychosis are later revised to schizophrenia. In this journal CME article, find out how cannabis and stimulants affect diagnostic stability in patients with psychosis.

Do you screen your patients with schizophrenia for suicidal ideation and medical illnesses? Although suicide is a frequent cause of death, lung and other cancers, respiratory illness, and circulatory illness are also more likely to cause death in patients with schizophrenia than in those without. Read this journal CME study to examine changes in mortality risk over the lifespan.

When you provide psychoeducation for family members of your patients with schizophrenia, when do you provide it and what format do you use? Read this CME activity in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry to learn about elements of psychoeducational interventions that have earned participants' satisfaction.

When your patients' depressive episodes have not fully remitted with antidepressant therapy, do you consider augmenting with bright light therapy? This treatment modality is accepted for seasonal depression, but a meta-analysis suggests that its efficacy extends to nonseasonal episodes as well. Learn more in this journal CME activity.

Read this CME case to meet a 70-year-old patient who has experienced speech changes that have gradually progressed for 4 years. She has had problems with word-finding, mispronunciations, mild stuttering, and made-up words, and, in the past year, she's begun having functional impairments. Follow along with colleagues through diagnosis and treatment steps.

Did you know that suicide is the second leading cause of death in adolescents? The US Surgeon General recommends implementing school programs to address adolescent distress, provide crisis intervention, and incorporate peer support for seeking help. Read this CME journal article about the results of a school-based suicide prevention program. Then, investigate school programs in your area, and screen young patients for suicidality.

Homeless mothers have high rates of mental and physical health problems and often have had multiple traumatic experiences. Although depression is common, most homeless mothers do not receive treatment for it. Therefore, targeting this population for depression screening in primary care settings, including shelter-based clinics, has the potential to more readily engage these women in treatment for depression and their other medical and mental health issues. Read this CME article to learn more.

Follow along as Mr A, an 82-year-old man with cognitive impairment, is evaluated and treated. His symptoms include getting lost while driving, forgetting conversations and events, and having disturbed sleep. Mr A also has mild tremors in his hands and some dizziness. What are the best diagnosis and treatments for Mr A?

Do you treat patients with type 2 diabetes who also have depression? Did you know that assessing and managing sleep problems might improve glycemic control in these patients? Read this journal CME article for more information.

How can outcomes be improved in patients with borderline personality disorder? Have you considered that reducing polypharmacy could help? Read this CME journal case study to follow a patient's symptoms and well-being as her medication regimen is simplified from admission to discharge and afterwards.

Permanent brain damage, long-term institutionalization, and death can result from undiagnosed and untreated Wernicke’s encephalopathy. Too many cases are not diagnosed until autopsy. Do you know which patients are at risk? Read this journal CME article to review the clinical diagnosis and effective treatment for this medical emergency.

Did you know that recommended dosing levels for zolpidem were lowered in 2013 due to risk of next-day driving impairment in up to 1 of 3 women and 1 of 4 men? Data from one pharmacy chain show that only 16% of new precriptions matched the lower dosing recommendations. Read this journal CME article to find out how you can improve patient and public safety.

How do you address psychological concerns in your patients who have experienced a miscarriage? Emotional distress usually follows early pregnancy loss. This reaction tends to improve over time, but women should be screened for depression and anxiety in case a formal evaluation and treatment are warranted. Read this journal CME activity to learn more.

How well are sleep problems being managed in your patients with PTSD? Insomnia, nightmares, sleep apnea, and sleep movement disorders are common in these patients. Read this journal CME activity to learn about diagnosing and managing these conditions so that you can better help your patients with PTSD.

Antidepressants are used in up to 50% of patients with bipolar depression. Do you prescribe them for your patients? Read this brief review to find out whether antidepressants work in bipolar depression and whether any benefits exceed risks, such as induction of (hypo)mania and rapid cycling.

Can people become addicted to suicidal behavior? Do individuals who attempt suicide 5 times or more represent a distinct phenotype among those with suicidal behavior? Read this journal CME article to learn more about the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients who repeatedly attempt suicide.

Did you know that anxious symptoms affect about half of patients with depression? To note the effects of anxiety within depression, the DSM-5 added an “anxious distress” specifier to the diagnosis of major depressive disorder. In this CME activity from The Primary Care Companion, read about the outcomes and side effect burden associated with anxious depression.

Unlike the DSM-IV-TR, the DSM-5 allows patients with subsyndromal mixed symptoms to receive a diagnostic specifier for mixed features, which may reduce the frequent misdiagnosis of bipolar disorder and improve treatment. Read about the diagnostic changes and the implications for treatment in this Primary Care Companion journal CME article.

Have any patients come to you with vision problems that their eye doctors can't solve? Read this Primary Care Companion interactive case report to learn about how these symptoms may be indicative of a variant of Alzheimer's disease or a precursor. Diagnostic tests and potential treatments are discussed.

Do you find the diagnosis and treatment of pediatric bipolar disorder challenging? Read this CME supplement to learn about the phenomenology and differential diagnosis of bipolar disorders in children and adolescents as well as evidence-based pharmacologic and psychotherapeutic interventions. With effective treatment and the support of their families, young patients with bipolar disorder can learn to manage the illness and become independent, healthy adults.

+Improving the Care and Management of Patients With Inadequate Response to Depression Treatment [Series Home Page]

What additional precautions should be taken when a patient presents with symptoms of depression as well as medical comorbidities? Consider the options as you review this new Case and Comment activity about Tony, a 64-year-old man whose treatment-resistant depression is more difficult to manage due to medical conditions.

What steps should be taken when you are presented with a patient who has been previously treated by a primary care provider but has been unresponsive to treatment? Gain insight into the challenges of treatment-resistant depression by exploring this new Case and Comment activity focused on Robert, a 55-year-old accountant.

What steps should be taken when your patient does not respond adequately to antidepressant medication and has symptoms that may indicate the presence of several diagnoses? Review this Case and Comment activity to analyze the case of Melissa, an architect whose treatment-resistant depression may be masking other diagnoses.

What should you do when your patients do not respond adequately to antidepressant therapy? Review this new Case and Comment activity to learn more about Alice's depressive episode and how you can help your patients like Alice achieve remission.

With only about one-third of patients with depression responding to their initial treatment trial, clinicians face the challenge of managing patients with poor response or treatment-resistant depression. In this Supplement, learn to identify difficult-to-treat types of depression, to select evidence-based treatments, to adjust treatment in a timely manner, and to coordinate care of comorbid conditions to improve patient outcomes.

+Enhancing Approaches to the Identification and Management of Pseudobulbar Affect [Series Home Page]

Pseudobulbar affect has been unrecognized and untreated for too long. Check out this activity and watch its brief videos to learn about this embarrassing, socially limiting condition so you can better help your patients.

The case of 42-year-old Mrs C illustrates the common combination of anxious depression and sleep problems. In this activity, learn about the relationship between these disorders and find effective strategies to treat insomnia with depression and anxiety.

Restoring function in areas like home, work, and relationships is an important treatment goal for patients with depression. Here, find practical rating scales to monitor areas of functioning and discover specific interventions to target these impairments.

Cognitive impairment is present in almost all patients with schizophrenia, yet it often receives less clinical attention than positive and negative symptoms. Read this supplement to help identify, monitor, and manage these symptoms in your patients.

Watch this webcast to see two patient cases with different sleep difficulties. Listen as the faculty discuss these cases and give evaluation tools and treatment strategies that will help you manage patients with sleep problems in your own practice.

How do you assess symptom resolution, treatment adherence, and tolerability in your patients with depression? Follow the 3 patient cases in this CME newsletter to learn how measurement-based care can help you monitor treatment, improve adherence and patient outcomes, and recognize and treat residual symptoms.

Do your patients with depression have trouble with medication adherence? Follow as Mr K, a 28-year-old patient, stops adhering to his antidepressant due to adverse effects, and learn techniques for questioning your patients, collecting their information, and providing them with clear instructions to improve adherence.

What treatment strategies do you consider for your patients who fail to respond to initial antidepressant treatment? Read the case of Mrs C to see how measurement-based care helps confirm her diagnosis, track symptom response, and assess her sense of well-being and to learn strategies for treating suboptimal response.

Like many patients being treated for depression, 86-year-old Mrs J does not recognize the residual symptoms she is experiencing. Follow her case as her psychiatrist uses several tools including rating scales and collateral information to identify her continuing symptoms and then considers different treatment strategies based on her age and symptoms.

In this CME podcast, listen to experts discuss the case of Mrs J, an elderly woman with a history of depression. She has reported insomnia and has requested a benzodiazepine to help her sleep. Although she claims that her depressed mood is well controlled, her husband reports differently. The experts review her treatment options, taking into account both her symptoms and her age.

In this CME podcast, listen to experts discuss the case of Mr K, a health 28-year-old man who has never needed medical care previously. He has recently lost his job and developed a major depressive episode that has complicated features. The experts review his objective screening and monitoring instrument results as well as possible steps to take that will help alleviate Mr K’s problematic symptoms.

In this CME podcast, listen to experts discuss the case of Mrs C, a 38-year-old married woman with depression who does not respond to initial antidepressant treatment. Next-step strategies for identifying the cause of nonresponse and tips for how to best monitor patients are discussed.

What strategies do you use to get patients with bipolar disorder to participate in their illness management? Play this game-based activity to see if you can help a long-term patient with bipolar disorder learn the importance of adhering to treatment, tracking mood states, and making important lifestyle changes.

Play your way to CME credit! This game-based activity lets you test your knowledge of assessment tools, treatment response, and patient education as you help 24-year-old Kate recover from her latest bipolar episode.

This activity lets you earn CME credit and learn the signs and symptoms of bipolar disorder—while playing games! You’ll follow the case of David, a 20-year-old college student while uncovering rating scales and diagnostic criteria that can help with patient assessment.

+Using Mechanism of Action to Choose Medications for Treatment-Resistant Depression [Series Home Page]

How do you handle patients who do not respond adequately to SSRI treatment? Explore this new Case and Comment to compare Maria's response to different antidepressant medications and learn more about how to effectively choose a therapeutic strategy for your patients.

Patients may experience a symptom profile that changes over time, such as a patient who first appears to have unipolar depression but later exhibits signs of mania or hypomania. Here, follow the case of Adam, a 30-year-old man, who is experiencing a recurrence of depression, and track his response through several antidepressant trials.

Therapeutic effects of antidepressants may vary greatly from patient to patient, with some patients failing to respond after several treatment trials. In this Case and Comment activity, follow the treatment steps taken for a 62-year-old surgeon with a treatment-resistant depressive episode.

What can you do for your patients with depression who show partial response or no response to treatment? Follow a discussion by expert faculty about how altering levels of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin in the brain may theoretically target specific depressive symptoms and how the mechanisms of action of different antidepressant classes are associated with therapeutic benefits and adverse effects.

Do you know how antidepressant classes can complement each other through different mechanism of action? Watch this webcast to learn the mechanism of action of various antidepressant classes and how to apply that knowledge to your patients with depression.

+Barriers to Remission in Major Depressive Disorder: Residual Symptoms, Functional Impairment, and Medication Mechanism of Action [Series Home Page]

Antidepressants, including SSRIs, may alleviate depressive symptoms but leave residual symptoms. In this activity, discover the mechanism of action of antidepressants and adjunctive agents and how to choose effective strategies to target specific symptoms or block/activate specific receptors for broader therapeutic benefits.

Unresolved symptoms of depression can cause functional impairment and negatively affect patients' work performance, home life, and relationships. In this Psychlopedia activity, learn how to assess functional impairments using validated rating scales and to address contributors to functional impairment.

While mood symptoms may remit in your patients with depression, lack of motivation and negative affect may keep patients from achieving full recovery. Here, learn how these residual symptoms hinder your patients' function and discover tools to assess quality of life and positive affect.

How is mental illness assessed and treated within the judicial system? Many mentally ill people spend time in correctional settings, and psychiatrists are involved in their evaluation and treatment. Participate in this Psychlopedia activity to find out about competency to stand trial and the insanity defense.

Patients with MDD may experience cognitive dysfunctions that make recovery difficult or incomplete. Read this new Academic Highlights to learn to understand and identify problems with cognition in depressed patients, and to learn new antidepressant therapies that improve all areas of cognition.

Do you consider cognitive symptoms when selecting a medication for major depressive disorder? Discover how to use cognitive scales to evaluate patient symptoms and needs, and understand the effects of various antidepressant medications on cognition.

Cognitive symptoms may be present before your patients experience a first depressive episode and linger between episodes and even after remission of mood symptoms. Read this new Psychlopedia activity to learn which cognitive symptoms will likely affect your patients with MDD, when these symptoms may occur, and how they may hinder patients at home, work, or school.

New research on brain networks provides insight into cognitive deficits prevalent in patients with depression. Explore this Psychlopedia activity to discover how disrupted connections and functions in various brain networks and regions contribute to cognitive symptoms and how new treatments are needed for these symptoms.

Physicians who are not sleep specialists often feel they lack knowledge about sleep disorders. Read this Psychlopedia activity to familiarize yourself with disorders associated with excessive daytime sleepiness and the assessment methods used to diagnose these disorders.

Given the prevalence of sleep disorders, too few sleep specialists are available. Therefore, other health care providers, especially primary care clinicians, need to know about the diagnosis of sleep disorders and the therapeutic options available to treat them. Read this Psychlopedia activity to increase your ability to select appropriate treatment strategies for sleep disorders.

Unrecognized conditions may be contributing to symptoms of daytime sleepiness and/or fatigue in your patients with sleep disorders. Learn about psychiatric, neurologic, and medical conditions that frequently coexist with sleep disorders and discover treatment strategies, both pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic, to improve patient outcomes.

Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and fatigue can lead to accidents or unemployment if left unrecognized and untreated in your patients. In this Psychlopedia activity, discover patient-report scales and objective measures to screen for these symptoms and learn to recognize common disorders that may cause or contribute to EDS/fatigue.

+Understanding and Coping With Binge Eating Disorder: The Patient’s Perspective [Series Home Page]

Patients with BED will likely seek treatment for another problem like depression or weight loss rather than admit their eating behaviors. Watch this webcast to learn how to assess for and diagnose BED in patients with comorbid conditions and to understand the current pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatment options available for patients with this condition.

+Overcoming Challenges in the Diagnosis and Management of ADHD in African American Adults [Series Home Page]

African American adults may not recognize their symptoms of ADHD because they have developed coping strategies. Explore this Commentary to learn about the prevalence of and assessment tools for ADHD in African American adults and to choose an individualized approach to treatment that is sensitive to your patients' background and current needs.

Over one-third of African American adults may not receive treatment for serious mental illnesses. Read this new Commentary to discover how the history of psychiatry and African Americans may contribute to attitudes of fear and mistrust regarding diagnosis and treatment and how these and other barriers to care may be addressed to improve the mental health care of your African American patients.

Do you know what keeps many African American patients from seeking treatment for mental health conditions? Read this new Psychlopedia activity to learn about barriers your African American patients face when seeking mental health services and to implement strategies to improve their care.

The history of racism within the field of psychiatry still affects African American patients today, making it difficult to diagnose psychiatric illness. Read this Psychlopedia to assess patients’ resistance toward psychiatric treatment in a culturally informed way and to better diagnose and treat African American patients with ADHD.

African American adults with ADHD are underdiagnosed and undertreated. Explore this activity to learn about issues involving the health care system and disparities in care for African American adults, and discover how you can further assess patient and provider cultural biases toward ADHD symptoms and treatment.

Misdiagnosis of bipolar depression can create a cascade of negative outcomes for patients. Read this Psychlopedia activity to understand the human costs of misdiagnosis and how to monitor depression in bipolar patients.

Patients with bipolar depression are too often misdiagnosed as having unipolar depression. Read this Psychlopedia activity to learn clues to aid in making the correct diagnosis and how to detect signs of bipolarity in depressed patients.

To effectively manage bipolar disorder, you need to be familiar with evidence-based pharmacotherapy. Find out which pharmacologic strategies are the most effective for bipolar depression and which agents work well as monotherapy or adjunctive therapy.

Most patients with bipolar disorder will require maintenance therapy to reduce their risk of recurrent mood episodes. Read this new Psychlopedia activity to learn tools to track depressive and manic symptoms throughout treatment and to discover which maintenance strategies are the most effective for reducing the risk of manic or depressive episodes.

Hispanic Americans often go underserved by the mental health community, though they make up the largest minority group in the United States. Read this new Commentary to learn new strategies for approaching Hispanic patients with ADHD about diagnosis and treatment.

Cultural differences may hide problematic symptoms, and minority patients with ADHD can fall behind in the workplace. Read this new Commentary to learn about the treatment disparities between Hispanics and the wider population and to discover the cultural barriers that affect recognition and treatment of ADHD.

About two-thirds of Hispanic people in the United States may not receive treatment for mental illnesses such as ADHD. Read this new Psychlopedia activity to learn about barriers to your Hispanic patients receiving mental health services and to acquire practical steps to address these barriers.

Hispanics are the most prevalent and diverse minority group in the US, and treating Hispanic adults for ADHD can be difficult. Read this Psychlopedia to learn about the unique characteristics and needs of Hispanic individuals with ADHD and use this knowledge to provide culturally competent diagnosis and treatment.

Standard hypotheses about the causes of schizophrenia fail to account for all types of symptoms. Watch this video to realize the importance of negative and cognitive symptoms and the limitations of current medications to adequately address those symptoms.

NMDA receptor function mediates the downstream release of neurotransmitters thought to be involved in schizophrenia, including dopamine, glutamate, and GABA. Here, review the function of NMDA receptors and find out about their possible role as a novel treatment target for schizophrenia.

Excess dopamine and abnormal dopamine synthesis cause the positive symptoms of schizophrenia, but does this dysfunction also account for the negative and cognitive symptoms seen in this disorder? Here, get an overview of dopamine dysfunction and find out why this treatment target may be limited for patients with schizophrenia.

Do you anticipate your patients' side effects from antipsychotic treatment based on the medication's mechanism of action? Read this new Psychlopedia activity to use the pharmacology of antipsychotics to help predict their clinical activity and to learn how long to wait until a steady state concentration is reached and when dose adjustments can be made.

Schizophrenia may be partially caused by deficient activity at glutamate synapses. Read this Psychlopedia activity to find out about the glutamate hypothesis to better understand the underlying neuropathology of the disorder and learn about glutamate as a potential treatment target for this illness.

Antipsychotics primarily address positive symptoms of schizophrenia, while disabling negative and cognitive symptoms can persist. This Commentary briefly explains the dopamine dysfunction of the disorder and how glutamate may provide possible novel targets for pharmacotherapy to more comprehensively manage the constellation of schizophrenia symptoms.

+Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Treatment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder [Series Home Page]

Have you wondered how you could reliably make a diagnosis of ADHD and differentiate it from a learning disorder or another psychiatric condition? If you have, then this case vignette and discussion should prove useful in your evaluation and management of patients and their families.

In this Neurology Report, experts from Banner Alzheimer’s Institute summarize ways to effectively communicate with patients and caregivers about an Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis and prognosis. Plus, they cover how to select appropriate treatments to slow functional decline and manage troublesome behavioral and psychological symptoms.

Language impairment may cause more difficulty than memory impairment among caregivers and patients with Alzheimer's disease. Gain knowledge of ways to educate caregivers about communication problems, mistakes to avoid, and effective strategies to improve communication.

+The Impact of Oral Medications on the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis [Series Home Page]

Breakthrough disease is common, even in patients with good adherence to their medications. Read this Neurology Report to learn ways to assess and manage adherence, monitor disease course through clinical and MRI measures, and make timely treatment adjustments in your patients with multiple sclerosis.

Current disease-modifying treatments in multiple sclerosis (MS) are effectively mainly in relapsing forms of MS and do not restore function. Read this Neurology Report to discover unmet needs for treatments of progressive MS and MS symptoms and to learn about the development of neuroprotective agents.

What follow-up strategies do you use to help your patients with depression who don’t respond adequately to initial treatment? Here, get guidance on how to choose appropriate first-line treatment, and learn how to monitor patients and make timely treatment adjustments.

How do you screen patients for depression in a busy primary care setting? In this new activity, read about effective assessment tools and strategies to diagnose depression and how to set goals and monitor progress once patients begin treatment.

How do you assess and treat residual symptoms in your patients who experience partial response to antidepressant therapy? Explore this Commentary to read a summary of 3 activities that provide assessment tools and treatment strategies for partial response and to learn areas of unmet needs and future education in depression treatment.

What decision-making process do you use for selecting treatment for your patients with bipolar disorder? In this activity, review pharmacologic principles for the use of mood stabilizers, antipsychotics, and antidepressants, and find out how to choose appropriate therapies for maintenance treatment and partial response.

Do you tailor your treatment plan for patients with MS according to their disease course and preferred administration method? Read this new Neurology Report to review the benefits and adverse effects of the available disease-modifying agents for MS and to select appropriate relapse treatment.

Early diagnosis of MS is critical for patients to begin disease-modifying therapy as soon as possible. Read this new Neurology Report to learn how to apply updated diagnostic criteria to recognize MS in its early stages and to rule out conditions similar to MS using appropriate tests.

A paradigm shift in schizophrenia treatment is focusing on the glutamate system for new agents to address all symptom domains. Read this new Psychlopedia activity to learn what adjunctive agents are in development to treat negative and cognitive symptoms as well as agents that work through different pathways.

How do you measure everyday functioning in your patients with schizophrenia? Read this Psychlopedia activity to learn about strategies and tools to assess your patients' functional disability and to discover factors that contribute to functional disability so you can select appropriate interventions.

Different definitions for patient outcomes can make study results difficult to compare and apply to your patients' treatment. Read this new Psychlopedia activity to understand criteria for response, remission, and recovery and how to apply study results to your own patients' treatment plans and goals.

Your patients' negative symptoms could be caused by depression, psychotic symptoms, medication side effects, or substance abuse. Read this new Psychlopedia activity to learn how to differentiate and treat the cause of negative symptoms and to recognize symptoms of apathy and diminished expression that emerge in most factor analysis studies of rating scales.

Persisting negative and cognitive symptoms negatively impact patients' functioning, quality of life, and chances for achieving recovery. In this Supplement, learn how to disinguish between primary and secondary negative symptoms, find out how to assess your patients' treatment response and functioning, and discover new therapeutic targets in the treatment of schizophrenia to comprehensively address all presentations of the disorder.

+Benefits and Barriers to Using Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotics in Schizophrenia [Series Home Page]

What methods do you use to assess your patients' medication adherence? Read this Psychlopedia activity to realize the factors that contribute to adherence problems and to discover multiple methods to assess adherence as well as how to identify patients who would benefit from long-acting injectable antipsychotic treatment.

What concerns regarding long-acting injectable antipsychotic treatment do you have? Check out this activity to review common attitudes that keep some clinicians from using this treatment as well as how to recognize which patients would benefit the most from this option.

Despite evidence of their benefits, long-acting injectable antipsychotics are underused in the US. In this multimedia activity, learn ways to overcome common misconceptions and logistical problems that hinder the use of LAI antipsychotics. Plus, see how leadership and staff buy-in are crucial for implementing this treatment.

+Improving the Diagnosis and Management of Depression in Bipolar Disorder [Series Home Page]

Depression in bipolar disorder can be difficult to diagnose and challenging to treat. Learn how to select evidence-based treatment and help your patients with bipolar depression achieve and maintain remission.

Are you up on the latest research for bipolar depression treatments? Here, review existing medications and find out about new treatments, like glutamatergic modulators, dopamine agonists, psychostimulants, and other agents, to help your patients with bipolar depression achieve remission while having a low side-effect burden.

Antidepressants continue to be prescribed as monotherapy to patients with bipolar depression even though guidelines advise against them. Here, Dr McElroy summarizes why antidepressant monotherapy is not recommended by current guidelines, what risks are associated with their use, and when their use is indicated.

Only 3 medications are currently FDA-approved for the treatment of bipolar depression. Read this new Psychlopedia to learn the effectiveness and adverse effects of approved bipolar depression treatments and to discover areas for future study.

How do you know if your patients are treatment resistant? In this activity, find out how to categorize treatment-resistant depression, what the risk factors are, and how to recognize and treat it to improve overall outcomes.

+Restless Legs Syndrome: Recognition, Diagnosis, and Treatment of a Common Sleep Disorder [Series Home Page]